STEVE BRUCE is hoping to get EIGHT new players to help fuel another Sunderland rebuilding job. The Black Cats' Premier League safety is virtually assured ahead of today's clash with Fulham allowing Brucie to start plotting for the summer. He could lose four of his five loan players with the futures of Danny Welbeck, Nedum Onuoha, Sulley Muntari and John Mensah uncertain. So that means Bruce will yet again be busy when the transfer window opens. He said: "At the start of the season I wanted to have a squad of 24 or 25. I thought it should be ample and my view hasn't changed. "I also went down the route of putting a young squad together and, again, I still think that is the right route for the club to go. "We left ourselves a bit short in the striking department, so we have to learn from that. "I wouldn't say it was another rebuilding project needed, but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to work out we have five loan players from a squad of 23 and we could lose a number of them. "We'd have to be talking about seven or eight signings. We probably need three strikers to start with, and then we could be looking at needing to replace four of our loan players just to keep numbers as they are. "Nedum has been a big player for us and I'd love to make him permanent."
i wouldn't be adverse to sighning ned, and think we may have a chance too, but if we don't there are others i wouldn't mind, chris baird, you'll get too see him today at sol. shawcross at stoke, samba, who everyone seems to be chasing. but all this depends on whether bruce would want ned as a c/b, maybe he see's ned as a r/b
Agreed mate and TBH the story does not really tell us anything we dont know, 8 is the minimum we need with 5 loan player in there. I know its been said all season but I hope Bruce has learned from the loan signings, I'm not against them jut need restructuring. If we loan with an agreement to sign then OK, I can see the point, Mensah, Muntari, Elmo are all players it was good to loan, not sure we will sign them so not stuck with them. I would just prefer to have our players if poss.
Would like ned but have a funny feeling a Mr J. Evans is on his way back here from manu. Still want a big target guy and a big hard intimidating midfielder. If Meyler can keep fit he would do he's like a bag of concrete on legs.
forgot about evans, another one i wouldn't mind, charlie adam for midfield, would be great, no idea on a forward as we get linked to everyone, how about berbatov?
Got a feeling we'll only get either Onouha or Welbeck but not both. I think we all know we need at least 8 players in the Summer from back to front and, that Mensah will be going back along with Muntari. If these Gyan rumours are true then that's another player we need 9 in total, personally I think Gyan will be with us for next season at least and these rumours are just Appy Arry trying it on again or more than likely lazy sports journos fishing.
I think Gyan will be with us but in my mind I have written off Welbeck, can only see him here on loan again, against that or in swap with Hendo, no longer want that. Lets get our own strike force.
Berbatov will not come to us he sees us as too small a club and will go to someone playing in European competitions, if Man Utd do sell then I think they'll be taking a loss on him as I'm not sure PL teams will pay what they did for him. A very good player on his day but those days are few and far between.
keep an eye on zamora today, not long back after injury, but still can be a canny player, also see if eidur gudjohnsen gets a game, linked with him several times, ok for a squad player... and watch their main man dempsey...
Berbatov is a definate no no for me. Great when he decides to turn up but that happens on too few occasions for my liking. In any event Bruce probably wouldn't be prepared to pay his wages.
I think people forget that Berbatov is the top scorer in the league. Fergie won't let him go and he wouldn't come to us. Personally I think he is top top class and would jump at any chance to sign him but like I say it's not going to happen
So another busy summer ahead for us, 8players and maybe more if Brucie shifts on the likes of Angeleri and Riveros. Brucie has said he will be looking at probably 3strikers but what other positions will he look to strengthen? I would Imagine RB (Onuoha is the man he wants) CB LB CM LW CF x3
poolie you watch european football. porto, hulk, nah forget him, what about his partner falcao, if only. but there is a lot of top forwards out there, depends on how bruce wants to spread the money out..
Yes mate, did you watch them destroy Villarreal the other night Falcao in particular. I think Brucie will go after 1 top class striker 10-15m +
Agree about Gyan, providing we get him someone decent to pop regular goals in - that's not Gyan's game, and he shouldn't be lumbered with the responsibility. Agree about Welbeck too. In fact, I'm not even sure Ferguson will risk loaning him again, given the injuries he's picked up here. I like Henderson, but, if I was him, I'd be watching the managerial position very closely. I think he's got a lot of bad press by being played out of position (and if we hit a blip next season, the same thing will happen again). If Bruce is staying, I'd slap a transfer request in for the sake of my career. If Bruce is going, I'd love Hendo to stay.
Never a truer line spoken. Dempsey is a quality player, and cruelly underrated. He'd not leave London though.
Does Bruce not annoy the **** out of you guys? I'd find him infuriating. Well the big downturn showed that his squad size wasn't ample, that his young squad has some major flaws, and that it was a little more than just a 'bit short' in the striking department. It honestly sounds like he hasn't learnt a thing from this whole season and he's just going to make the same mistakes all over again. I can't see one admittance of something he will change to ensure that the problems of this season do not occur again. Heck, for all I know he might take out yet another 4/5 loan signings and piss that up the wall as well.
Cant see us selling Gyan, we are in the mess we are in at the minute due to selling Bent. Selling Gyan will just make it harder to get the amount of strikers we need. I think we will probably sign Ned perm. I wouldn't be surprised it we get Mensah on another seasons loan. Not like hes any use to Lyon, and I cant see any other teams wanting to buy him. I also have a feeling we will pay good money for another forward from France. Bruce always seems to go back to the same regions to get players who are a success. Dont know where the money for 8 players will come from though. We wont be selling many players like previous seasons.
